Welcome to Pastrami Nation’s Mega Podcast! Join Nolan, Jason, and a slew of amazing podcasters, reviewers, and guests from our eight-year history! We talk about pop culture during these COVID times, debate what franchise is doing better in 2020 (Star Wars or Star Trek), and learn about our amazing giveaways that end on May 13th!!!

By Staff Reports #GamersVSCovid, a charity streamathon in support of Direct Relief’s Covid-19 Fund for Community Health, kicks off this Sunday, April 26 with free-to-enter, donation-encouraged tournaments featuring Fortnite hosted by Team SoloMid’s ZexRow and Reverse2k, YouTube sensation Michelle Phan, former NBA pro Nate Robinson, and other fan-favorite content creators. The 12-hour streamathon will be…Read moreRead more

By Nolan P. Smith Editor (Victor Valley)– During these COVID-19 days, some of us are turning to our creative side in ways of coping and creating works of art. The same is true for six-year-old Sebastien Gonzalez, he created a children’s book, with a little help from his mom, Melanie, dad, Miguel and dog, Blue. Gonzalez…Read moreRead more

By Staff Reports For the first time in its 50-year history San Diego Comic Convention (SDCC), the organizers behind the annual pop culture celebration, announced today with deep regret that there will be no Comic-Con in 2020. The event will instead return to the San Diego Convention Center from July 22-25, 2021. Recognizing that countless…Read moreRead more

By Staff Reports WWE is saddened to learn that Howard Finkel has passed away at age 69. When considering the greatest ring announcers in the history of sports and sports-entertainment, you’d be hard-pressed to name one better than Howard Finkel. A native of Newark, NJ, “The Fink” — a label that had been attached affectionately…Read moreRead more

By Staff Reports Linebreakers, the largest comic book and hobby shop in the High Desert, has brought together the talents of seven local artists for an Art Drive that will help support the artists, as well as help purchase COVID-19 supplies for St. Mary Medical Center in Apple Valley. “We are doing this in an…Read moreRead more

By Nolan P. Smith Who isn’t a fan of John Krasinski? The all-around good guy from The Office turned action hero is at it again, as he brings his second installment of Some Good News to a world desperately in need of some. The episode features many amazing spots of good news, of a nation…Read moreRead more

By Staff Reports ORIGIN PC and CORSAIR are putting out a call to action to all PC gamers and PC users around the world to join Folding@Home to help accelerate the research of COVID-19. Folding@Home works by simulating the dynamics of coronavirus proteins to aid in the discovery of potentially druggable pockets. To help with…Read moreRead more

By Staff Reports FaZe Clan, the world’s most popular esports and gaming entertainment collective, activated the global streaming community for positive action during the current pandemic with its first #FIGHT2FUND online pro-am tournament earlier this week. Organized by FaZe Clan in less than 48 hours, the worldwide community galvanized for the first competition in the…Read moreRead more

By Nolan P. Smith Editor I have watched the world change in a matter of days, as we all have. It went from precautions to self-isolation and social distancing in the blink of an eye. First and foremost, I hope everyone reading this is safe and healthy. What we are seeing is a nation driven…Read moreRead more

By Kevin Hoskinson Disney announced that they are halting production on all of their live-action films currently filming. They had multiple projects in the works, both for “Disney+” and theatrical release. Some of the films affected are: “The Last Duel” from Ridley Scott, “Nightmare Alley” from Guillermo Del Toro, and “The Little Mermaid” from Rob…Read moreRead more

By Kevin Hoskinson First and foremost, our thoughts are with those affected by the Coronavirus around the world, and we are hoping this all comes to an end very soon. With the Coronavirus (or COVID-19) becoming more widespread across the globe, certain precautions are being taken to help contain it. While the CDC and the…Read moreRead more

By Staff Reports The NBA announced that a player on the Utah Jazz has preliminarily tested positive for COVID-19. The test result was reported shortly prior to the tip-off of Wednesday’s game between the Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena. At that time, Wednesday’s game was canceled. The affected player was not…Read moreRead more

By Nolan P. Smith Photos by Nolan P. Smith, Jason T. Smith, Eddie Aguirre and Jessica Rude-Aguirre This past Saturday, residents made their way to the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds for the first-ever pop culture/comic book convention to come to the High Desert as JayZoMon’s Pop Culture Expo brought cosplay, comic books, celebrities, and professional…Read moreRead more

By Nolan P. Smith Funko is a brand known around the world, and they are helping out around the world with a Pop! Vinyl figure created to assist with Australia wildfire recovery efforts. In a partnership with Popcultcha, all profits from the sale of this awesome POP! figure will go towards the RSPCA National Bushfire…Read moreRead more

On November 12th, 2018, the world got the news it never wanted to hear: Stan Lee has died, and the world just got a lot colder. Born Stanley Martin Lieber, the man is often considered the father of Marvel Comics, and rightfully so. He is responsible for creating and co-creating the cornerstones of the Marvel…Read moreRead more

By Staff Reports Dark Horse Comics is devastated by the news of Anthony Bourdain’s passing. The Dark Horse family greatly enjoyed working with him and Joel Rose on Hungry Ghosts. The friendship between the co-writers was something to behold, which is evident in the caliber of their writing. We are honored to have worked with…Read moreRead more

The galaxy’s watering hole cesspool Scum and Villainy extends through June By Staff Reports (Victor Valley)– The Scum & Villainy Cantina, the popular pop-up intergalactic experience that has been virtually sold out for its initial two-month run, is extending its inaugural activation through June 2017, proprietor J.C. Reifenberg announced Monday night at the Hollywood establishment.

Former Doctor Who Lead David Tennant Gives the World Hope “It’s all going to be ok, trust me, I’m a doctor.” That is the start to an inspirational, quirky speech actor David Tennant delivered at the end of the “The Last Leg.” With some humor thrown in for good measure, the former Doctor Who actor…Read moreRead more

Beloved Star Wars Icon, Author and Advocate Carrie Fisher Leaves Behind An Unbelievable Legacy By Nolan P. Smith The news gushed in from every media outlet: on December 27th, the world lost Carrie Fisher. The actress and author is best known for her iconic role in the Star Wars universe, portraying the strong willed Princess…Read moreRead more

All-New Digital Comic MADAYA MOM Tells the True Story of a Family’s Fight for Survival Inside Syria By Staff Reports ABC News and Marvel today announced MADAYA MOM, an original digital comic detailing the harrowing true story of one family’s struggle to survive in the besieged Syrian town of Madaya. An extraordinary tale of courage and…Read moreRead more

By Nolan P. Smith As our three day weekend for Memorial Day comes to a close, I would like to thank all those men and women who died serving our country. Freedom is not free, and for many, they paid the ultimate price so that we could enjoy the freedom that we seem to take…Read moreRead more

Review by Nolan P. Smith (Victor Valley)– Joey is an eleven year old boy in for the journey of his life. Whisked away to a fantastical land full of delight and danger, he is faced with the harsh reality of the world, and in the end, faces what it means to grow up from being…Read moreRead more

By Staff Reports (X-Box Wire)– To the community of 100 million players around the world, Minecraft represents many things – creativity, strategy, collaboration and survival, just to name a few. What many may not realize is that Minecraft has the power to transform learning on a global scale. By creating a virtual world and then…Read moreRead more

By Nolan P. Smith Today marks Dia De Los Muertos, the Day of the Dead. On this today, people across the world pay their respects to the ones we have lost. We wanted to share with you all this amazing Dia De Los Muertos cosplay that we saw today at the Comikaze Expo today, as…Read moreRead more

Comic Book Store Drought in the High Desert Ends as Two Shops Emerge
Comic Book Store Drought in the High Desert Ends as Two Shops Emerge
Top- Robert Lamphere from QBC Toys and MoreBottom- Henry and Cathy Henrich from Comic Cult HD By Nolan P. Smith Photos by Nolan P. Smith and Phillip Gutierrez (Victor…Read moreRead more